Keep the hood. It's a fancy high-end item AND it is functional. Changing cooktop is optional--I would only change it if I were switching to induction or if it didn't work right.

Another vote for keeping the hood. Maybe change that cabinet to open shelving (although, be prepared for cleaning things often if you cook even part time). I might consider changing the pendants to be led discs instead. I wouldn't put in a downdraft ever, but most certainly not with a gas stove.

Are you able to use that upper cabinet at all? You could just remove it. But as others said, you have to keep an overhead hood unless you switch to electric/induction cooktop.

@anj_p @mcarroll16 Yes, we can kind of use those uppers for spices and cooking oils. The rest is just infrequent storage. It would be difficult to remove those uppers because, for some incredibly insane reason, both uppers on either side of the window cut into the window molding. Removing one without the other would call more attention to that issue. Ugh…. so many bad decisions by the previous owners!

Who is the "everyone" that is telling you the hood has to go. It is completely functional and high end.

I am probably a voice in the wildnerness but I would not lower the height of the peninsula counter because you will not have gained any functional space since the whole counter will now be level with the stove and not particularly safe to sit at. As it is now having the counter raised is functional since it protects those who are sitting at it from contact with hot surfaces.

Also I don't understand the aesthetics of being able to see clearly into what is generally a messy part of the kitchen - i.e. the stove with the surrounding pots and whatever.

Swap the cooktop for induction. Miele or Bosch are two. Or look at Ikea, made by Electrolux with a 5 year warranty. You'll need less ventilation because of no waste heat You'll have an easy to clean smooth surface for your more open layout. And induction is faster responding than gas. You're saving money. How about using the portion of the refacing budget allocated to the two uppers on either side of the window. Take both down. Retrim the window. Get a new matching cabinet to the left of the window that's not as wide as the old one. What should have been installed originally. Your kitchen won't look incorrectly installed. Good for resale.

@helen re: lowering the peninsula counter, we have very little counterspace in this kitchen, so I do think lowering the counter to all one level will give us a little bit more prep space. I may be missing your point about the whole counter not being level with the stove, but the plan is to have the whole counter at one level. There is a breakfast nook area on the other side of the peninsula, so we’re not planning on using the peninsula for seating. There really isn’t room for both counter stools and a breakfast table. The sellers just made it look like there was for the pictures. I get your point about hiding the dirty cooking space, but I think our need for counter prep space is going to win out over that issue. Also going for a more updated look.

Keep the hood and as was said above keep the raised area behind cook top. It really doesn't look bad with it hanging there. Much healthier air quality with a gas cooking appliance to have a real vent hood. Downdrafts aren't really very effective.

It's a very pretty kitchen. I hate to see either the hood or the cabinets to be taken out as they both look nice, but they don't seem to function together. I had a JennAir range that came with the first home we purchased and it worked well for us. Like you, I'm not a big chef. and the downdraft was sufficient for how much we cooked on it. JennAir does seem to have a lot of maintenance issues so I'd check reviews before purchasing.

@Emily thanks for the kind words. Unfortunately, the prior owners did a really good job hiding the kitchen’s issues for listing. For example, cabinet paint started chipping immediately after moving in. We’ve found other evidence that this kitchen was an amateur DIY. The beautiful wet bar area helps at least. Really wish we could find the budget to fully remodel. But, this 1935 house is a bit of a puzzle, so im not sure anything can solve our layout issues! I’ll definitely consider removing that cabinet.

@dan1888 interesting suggestion i’ll certainly consider. Thanks!

Does that hood actually vent outside, or is there a recirculating filter inside that vents to those slots at the top? Sight lines could improve using a larger hood modestly higher, but I wouldn't make the change just for that. Induction will reduce the amount of effluent that must be removed, and improve air quality.

@kaseki not sure wny those slots are there, but it does vent to the attic and I am almost certain outside from there.

If you have a look in the attic the duct pipe should run to an outlet outside. If not, it needs to.

Yeah, it's definitely a good idea to go check your attic. If the last owners did other slap-dash DIY, who knows what they did with their venting.

I checked, and it does vent to the outside, so we’re good there. I guess I’ll just stick with the current gas cooktop/vent hood configuration. It definitely closes things off a bit, but I’m just too concerned about the downdraft’s effectiveness in removing fumes with little kids in the house. Hopefully lowering the peninsula to all one level will open things up some (sorry to those who suggested it - I don’t think I can live with the two tier counter… need the prep space!) I’ll consider removing the cabinets near the vent, but need to look at the budget, given it would require re-doing the cabinet on the other side of the window, the window molding, and the crown molding. Good suggestion, though.

We have a similar layout in our kitchen which we recently renovated (new appliances, cabinet refacing, new countertops) but there was no hood and we installed a 36" Jennair downdraft (which we had changed from the original GE downdraft). I agree with others in keeping the hood as it is more effective than a downdraft and doesn't appear to impact your line of sight to the dining areas. It isn't cheap to properly install under cabinet duct work and vent to the outside of the house. And a downdraft will also reduce under-counter cabinet space.

The cabinets near the hood are never going to be easy to access even if you get rid of the hood. Because of the L-shaped counter it will always be a reach/poorly accessible. We have the same cabinets in that area (but no hood) and I basically use it for storage of items I rarely need to access. I don't think it's worth removing them completely because why not keep them; people love cabinet space!

Personally I like the two-tiered countertop but I get why you may not like it. I sit my toddler on the counter top and she could reach over to the cooktop, but in a two-tier she probably would not be able to get as close to it if she were higher up. If you do make it all one level then I would jut the counters out a few inches further so that you have additional counter space.

Thank you @Jesse R.. Nice to have the perspective of someone in a similar situation!

For your and your families health you want an overhead hood and not a downdraft. And you want to ALWAYS use the hood anytime you use the rangetop. This regardless of gas or induction.

Years ago I had a jen air, the vent was noisey and not good. when we redid the kitchen i did a thermador range and a telescope down vent. condiderable improvement over ja.

i loved the island range.

Another vote for keeping the hood. We just finished a remodel and chose a hood over downdraft for efficiency for a dual fuel range.  Our hood is just a little father over on our "L" to give more space to the cabinet access. Is there any room to bump the cooktop/hood over, or is that too small for the walkway on the other side? We also chose to keep about "6"  behind the range for a backsplash, electrical and countertop. We like that it defines the space from the dining room and like the "old school"pass through and use the top counter without making it additional seating.